Feb. 10, 2005

Contact:
Melanie Hall
Finance and Administration Manager
UNITY
(703) 854-3585
e-mail

Strategic Plan Positions UNITY as An Aggressive Leader in Creating a More Diverse and Responsible Journalism Industry

ARLINGTON, Va. (February 10, 2005) – UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. has released a new five-year strategic plan that positions the organization as a more aggressive advocate for newsroom diversity and for more responsible and accurate reporting by the nation’s journalism industry.

The plan, approved recently by the UNITY board of directors, calls for people of color to make up no less than 20 percent of newsroom staffs and at least 15 percent of newsroom managers. The plan also adopts goals that would have UNITY be a “more forceful and consistent” voice for journalists of color, sponsor a presidential campaign debate in 2008, and further improve its fiscal strength.

Representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, UNITY is an alliance comprised of four national associations: Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association.

“UNITY will continue to weigh in on issues affecting our members, whether it deals with diversity and fair and accurate coverage or whether it deals with freedom of the press and media consolidation,” said Mae Cheng, UNITY president and an assistant city editor for Newsday. “We will also play a greater role in working with communities of color across the country to learn how we can better cover them and their issues – as well as to ensure that news products better serve them.”

The strategic plan vision describes a world where the journalism industry delivers “a complete, fair and representative picture of the communities and world in which we live,” which can only be accomplished through “diversity in the newsroom and in coverage.”

The plan outlines five major areas for the organization:

Advocacy: UNITY will build on the existing efforts of alliance members, engage communities of color to increase understanding and spur action to hold the media accountable for accurate and balanced coverage, and engage the industry to embrace a commitment to journalism that reflects the diversity of the country and excludes racial stereotypes and myths. UNITY will educate the industry and the public about the necessity for training, hiring, promoting and retaining adequate numbers of people of color at all levels, especially in decision-making and policy positions.

Research: UNITY will be a source of information and data to bring greater momentum to the issues of diversity in the newsroom and quality coverage of people of color in the media.

Convening: UNITY will use its collective strength to convene gatherings on a scale larger than alliance members could do individually.

Fundraising: UNITY will be a self-sustaining organization with a diversified financial base that complements, but does not compete with, the work of its alliance partners, amplifying the impact of each partner organization and serving as a platform for collective action.

Communications: UNITY will advance the dialogue about issues related to diversity in the newsroom and provide actionable solutions and ideas.

Anna Lopez, UNITY executive director, said that “the strategic plan and revised mission statement and goals not only ensures that UNITY have a clear path but it also helps us in setting the groundwork for ensuring a more sustainable organization.”

The organization’s new plan was crafted only months after it held its third quinqennial convention in Washington, D.C, with 8,100 attendees – the largest convention of journalists in history. The program included speeches by President George W. Bush and challenger Senator John F. Kerry.

UNITY kicked off the convention by releasing a report detailing the Washington print press corps’ dismal record of diversity, with only one in 10 writers, editors and bureau chiefs in the Washington daily newspaper press corps being journalists of color.

Even though the United States is quickly becoming more diverse – almost one third of the population is non-white – the corps of print journalists who regularly cover the federal government and lead the national dialogue on the issues facing this country does not come close to reflecting its citizenry.

For downloadable copies of the strategic plan, go to http://unityjournalists.org/images/unity5yrplan.pdf.

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About UNITY: Journalists of Color
UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. is a strategic alliance advocating news coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations at all levels to reflect the nation’s diversity. UNITY, representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, is comprised of four national associations: Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association.

In addition to planning the largest regular gathering of journalists in the nation, UNITY develops programs and institutional relationships that promote its mission. For more information on UNITY, visit www.unityjournalists.org, email info@unityjournalists.org or call (703) 854-3585.